She had a dream …. really. One night (in her dream) her book clubbers were arguing over which book to read. She suggested (still in the dream) that they write a story instead of reading someone else’s. And that’s when Marcie Jacobs, a 20-plus year advertising pro, began chasing a new passion of being an entrepreneur game developer and the dream of StoryClub Games began turning into a reality.
After a record year of researching, concepting, testing, tweaking, designing, revising, negotiating and testing some more, StoryClub debuted with the Girls’ Night Edition. The premise is simple. Story Starter cards get the stories going and “People,” “Places” and “Things” cards keep the stories going. Edgy and a tad provocative, you just never know where a Girls’ Night StoryClub story will go … especially after a sip or two of vino!
Marcie hails from the greater Kansas City area, but now lives in Charleston, S.C. She considers herself a Midwestern-Southerner. Always up for a great party, she knows that when you gather friends and add in a pinch of creativity, you’re going to get a load of laughter and fun. So far, StoryClub is keeping women laughing for days!
What are you working on right now?
I am working on getting as many people as possible to know about and experience StoryClub!
3 Trends that excite you?
Three trends that excite me are:
1. The recent surge in board game popularity
2. The growing trend of “monthly” friend gatherings, i.e., book club, bunko club, supper club, bridge club
3. The desire and increased need for personal and face-to-face connections — There isn’t a women’s magazine that doesn’t talk about this.
How do you bring ideas to life?
First, and most importantly, surround yourself with positive people that believe in what you are doing. There is no place in an entrepreneur’s life for “glass half empty” connections. Second, get your group of guinea pigs that you completely trust and test, test, test, and then test some more.
What is one mistake you’ve made that our readers can learn from?
If you are producing something for the first time, produce a smaller amount the first go around even if there are big savings with larger quantities. I guarantee, even with all the testing, you’ll want to tweak something the second you receive the finished product. It happened to me.
What is one book and one tool that helps you bring ideas to life?
The one tool that helped me bring this idea to life was my brain. Corny as it sounds. That and Google searches.
What is one idea you’re willing to give away to our readers?
Get out there. Meet everyone you can. Talk to everyone you can. Not in a sales-y way, but in a desiring to know what they want kinda way. Learn how you can help create change in their lives. And be a good listener!
What is the one thing that makes a story great?
When your story is able to elicit real human emotions it is great. That’s when you have made a difference and created change for your listener. Truth always trumps facts in good stories.
What does your retirement (haha) dream look like?
A house on about 5 acres in Western Colorado somewhere near Telluride loaded with glittering aspen tress, a nice range view, and possibly, a babbling spring. The town must have a Main Street where I will run a coffee shop called Retreivers where three labs (yellow, chocolate and black) by the names of Shug, Mud and Eve will greet locals every morning. <Sigh> The question did say dream!
Connect:
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Mario Schulzke is the Founder of ideamensch, which he started a decade ago to learn from entrepreneurs and give them a platform for their ideas.